For example, if you lose 6 pounds on the scale because you have changed your diet and increased your exercise regimen, you may have actually dropped 10 pounds of body fat and added 4 pounds of lean body mass, including muscle. Or, you may have lost 3 pounds of lean mass (including muscle) and 3 pounds of fat mass.

Each option will result in looser fitting clothing but only ONE option—adding 4 pounds of muscle—will result in an increase in your metabolism. Why? Because lean body mass burns more calories than fat mass.

Also, it is important to understand that as we age, the average person continually loses lean body mass. In fact, most people lose between 3% and 5% of their lean mass between the ages of 40 and 50. Worse, each year after that, most of us lose another 1% to 2% each year.

Ironically, the more lean body mass (muscle) we lose, the slower our metabolism becomes resulting in a never ending downward spiral. The fat burning process will just continue to slow as we lose lean body mass.

The good news is, this downward spiral is all preventable and even reversible. But, to properly manage and track your change and progress as you add lean body mass to become a greater percentage of your total body composition, you need to know what the make-up of your weight change really is.

As the expression goes, knowledge is power. If you know your body composition including body fat percentage AND your RMR, you can best assess whether or not you are consuming enough protein first and foremost. Plus, you can make certain that you are not under-eating or, equally as important, over-training.

Losing weight can be a bit of a challenge, and when you exercise, eat right, and then stand on the scale and see numbers you did not expect to see based on your efforts, it can be very discouraging. However, does that number on the scale tell the true story with respect to your overall level of fitness?